A design competition aims to create ready-to-use plans for homeowners who want to build an “Accessory Dwelling Unit” on their property. The contest, sponsored by city and county government plus RUPCO, is part of a major effort by the city to encourage the development of ADUs as a means of alleviating Kingston’s housing affordability crisis.

ADUs are stand-alone living spaces constructed inside the structure of or on the same parcel as a single-family home. Examples include basement and garage apartments, and backyard cottages. In 2021, the Common Council amended the city’s zoning code to lift restrictions on ADUs. A new zoning code currently under consideration by the council would simplify the approval process for the residential spaces. Supporters of ADUs say they can provide an affordable housing option for low- and moderate-income residents while providing extra income for homeowners or allowing older or younger relatives to stay with their families. ADUs also fit in with the overall goal set by the administration of Mayor Steve Noble of creating a denser, more urban and more walkable city.

The Say Yes to ADUs! contest, which is funded through the city’s $17 million federal pandemic relief allocation, is open to licensed architects; judges evaluate designs in a student/nonprofessional category separately. Contestants are tasked with designing a freestanding ADU that could serve as a model for Kingston and beyond. Contest rules call for designing a structure that can fit on the kind of 50-by-100-foot lots common in the city’s denser neighborhoods alongside a 22-by-35-foot two-story single-family home. The unit itself must be between 250-1,000 square feet and include a kitchen, bathroom and sleeping area, as well as a separate entrance. Contest rules also call for the design to include all electric heating, cooling and hot water systems.

A key criterion is affordability — contestants must keep the cost of their design under $125,000.

“Part of the intention of the ADU Design Competition, is to catalyze innovative ways to build ADUs that low-income and working-class households can afford to rent,” the contest rules read. “We strongly encourage applicants to think and design creatively to reduce the total estimated construction costs of their ADU.”

The emphasis on affordability reflects the requirements of another program intended to encourage the growth of ADU housing countywide. This summer will see the rollout of the new “Home Plus One” program. The effort, powered by a grant the county won from the state Division of Homes and Community Renewal, offers grants of up to $125,000 to low- and moderate-income homeowners to build new code-compliant ADUs. In exchange, recipients must commit to maintaining the unit as affordable housing for 10 years. The program also includes a one-stop hub at the city’s Department of Housing Initiatives to assist would-be ADU erectors with design, permitting, financing and other assistance.

While Kingston is leading the ADU design competition, the competition and its final set of plans will be available to anyone in the county, according to Ulster County Planning Department Senior Planner Kai Lord-Farmer. The Plus One Home program and the $125,000 grants are also available to anyone in the county and are intended to address the countywide housing crisis, Lord-Farmer said.

“The design competition is a creative way to educate the public with tangible examples of how freestanding ADUs might look in their neighborhoods,” Mayor Steve Noble said in a statement. “The Yes to ADUs! design contest and the Plus One Home Program are part of my administration’s ongoing efforts to use every tool within reach to combat our housing crisis here in Kingston.”

The winner of the design contest will receive $25,000 in exchange for producing construction documents that can serve as an “out of the box” blueprint for participants in the Home Plus One program and others.

Design submissions are due by August 15. For more information go to www.engagekingston.com.